US Vice President
Trump’s Loyal Assistant: Why Mike Pence Has A Problem Near End Of Term
Mike Pence, Vice President of the United States
© Jeff Kowalsky/AFP
Mike Pence has been loyal to Donald Trump for more than six years. Even now, the vice is still one of the hardliners in the presidential clan who have not yet admitted Joe Biden’s election victory. That could change soon, however.
Batman has Robin. Mick Jagger has Keith Richards. Michael Jordan had Scottie Pippen. All great men, or even those who are simply great, have it: the loyal, sometimes even devoted sidekick, the sparring partner and sufferer who sometimes suddenly steps out of the background and becomes the hero of history.
Donald Trump hat Mike Pence.
Since Trump made him a running mate during the election campaign in the summer of 2016, the former governor of Indiana has been unconditionally at the side of the US president. Neither the allegations of sexual harassment against Trump, nor his unpredictable moods, nor the impeachment process, not even the clear election result in November ensured that the conservative Christian gave his wandering boss a millimeter from the side.
Mike Pence must confirm Biden’s victory in Congress
But like so many facets of the Trump era, the Pence personality could experience another special twist shortly before the end. At a time when many Republicans are slowly targeting the period after January 20 – the date Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th President of the United States – the Vice President still hasn’t congratulated the Democrat on his election victory, which he just did still has in common with the hard core of Trump. But unlike them, that could change for Pence shortly.
Because on January 6th he chairs the session in Congress that confirms Biden’s victory in Electoral College. That means: He will read out the result to the Senate and the House of Representatives that he has not yet publicly recognized – a denial of reality that Trump has already asked him to do via Twitter.
Pence is a seasoned politician who served in Congress for twelve years. Of course, he knows that he and Trump lost the election to Biden and Kamala Harris. But despite this, he has so far managed to continue following the course of his superior. The fight will not stop, Pence announced in mid-December on social media, “until every legal vote is counted and every illegal vote is discarded.”
Of course there is a calculation behind this form of loyalty. After all, Pence witnessed how many of the President’s companions over the past few weeks attracted Donald’s ire just for accepting the defeat. Ask Mitch McConnell or the entire Supreme Court.
On the other hand, Pence is a reserved type, for whom a second level is always entirely conceivable. For example, the US news magazine “The Daily Beast” cites an anonymous government official as its source who claims, “The Vice President does not want to go down with this ship.” Pence’s portrait was also removed from the logo of Trump’s election campaigns and his name was removed from the sender area of the committee’s emails, further research by “The Daily Beast” revealed.
The trip abroad to the Middle East
However, there is, objectively speaking, little evidence why Pence should give up his loyalty now of all times after four and a half years of more or less pronounced insanity under Trump. Accordingly, one of its spokesmen has already denied the report by “The Daily Beast”.
Nevertheless, the traditional processes are likely to ensure that Pence feels a particular pressure in the next few days. Because with the official count on January 6th, he would personally initiate a smooth handover to Joe Biden, which is not without a certain irony for the neutral observer. For Pence it should be an internal battle from which he can hardly emerge without a scratch.
Under these conditions, Pence would probably like to run away as soon as the official part is over. So it is hardly surprising that the US portal “Politico” reports that Pence has planned a trip abroad to the Middle East, including to Israel and Bahrain. This, of course, fits in with the past efforts of the Trump administration in the region. And who would be a better ambassador than evangelical pence?
According to “Politico” the start date of the trip is set for January 6th.